The Behavioral change in ENergy Consumption of Households (BENCH) agent-based model
- The BENCH model is designed to study shifts in residential energy use and corresponding emissions driven by behavioral changes among heterogeneous individuals.
- Download the Model Open Access Code (+ODD description)
- Read the article in Energy Policy
- Read the article in Climatic Change
BENCH relies on environmental psychology that suggests that behavioral changes regarding energy use are affected by knowledge, awareness, motivation and social learning among households. We quantitatively trace an interplay of personal and social norms, with and without carbon pricing policies, to estimate the uptake of green technologies and diffusion of green behavior and corresponding reductions in residential carbon emissions. The BENCH agent-based model was developed within the PhD project of Leila Niamir.
A household’s decision-making algorithm in the BENCH-v.2 agent-based model
There is a number of energy-related actions in which individuals may pursue to influence their electricity consumption and, consequently, their carbon footprint. An individual can make an investment (A1), either large such as installing solar panels or small such as buying energy-efficient appliances. Alternatively, individuals can save energy by changing their daily routines and habits (A2) like switching off the extra lights and adjusting a thermostat/air conditioner. Finally, households can switch to a supplier that provides green electricity (A3).
The BENCH-v.2 agent-based model simulated complex and nonlinear behavior that is intractable in equilibrium models.
